ITHACA TODAY: Tuesday, Nov. 5

Guillermo Metz, the green building and renewable energy program coordinator for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County, discussed global climate change with an audience of more than 50 students and faculty members

1. The Office of Career Services and Alumni Relations will host a panel discussion, titled, “What Can You Do With a Liberal Arts Degree?” at 7 p.m. tonight in Clark Lounge. The panel will include John Balduzzi ’01, Jacklyn Penna ’92, Erin McKinley ’92 and Nancy Bilmes ’90. The discussion is a part of the annual Susan DiPace ’74 Speaker Series.

3. The Cornell University Department of Food Science will host a seminar on the effects of obesity on the food industry. The seminar, which will feature Paulette Goddard, professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University, will be held at 4 p.m. in Stocking Hall.

Top news of the dayThe stories you should check out

1. Guillermo Metz, the green building and renewable energy program coordinator for Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County, spoke yesterday in the Center for Natural Sciences, room 112, as a part of the Sustainability Cafe. In his presentation, Metz discussed the impact that local action can have on addressing global climate change. For the full story of Metz’s presentation, check Latest Headlines later today.

2. The Ithaca Fire Department responded to reports of an apartment fire at 301 Maple Ave. around noon Monday. Firefighters arrived to find one apartment ablaze, but they were able to contain the fire. No one was injured in the fire, but some occupants were displaced.

3. The Tompkins County Legislature’s budget committee recommended that action be taken to facilitate the transfer of ownership of Beechtree Care Center, a nursing home in Ithaca, from the county to private company BTRNC LLC. BTRNC LLC has been operating the facility since September and is waiting for state approval to become the official operator.

Fact of the dayDid you know?

Cornell University plans to return 10,000 ancient tablets to Iraq in what is expected to be one of the largest returns of antiquities from an American university. The Iraqi government requested the return of the tablets in 2012, and the deal is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Binghamton. The ancient tablets date back to the 4th Century and provide scholars with a record of daily life in Mesopotamia. They were donated to the university by antiquities collector Jonathan Rosen and his family in 2000, but scholars suspected many of the tablets were looted from Iraq after the Gulf War. The acquisition of the tablets was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security in 2001 to see if Cornell violated the Trading with the Enemy Act, which barred doing business with Iraq at the time, but no violations were found.